How Any Black Person Can Change the Future of Healthcare

Over the past few years, we have learned more about how COVID-19 and other infectious diseases are affecting populations around the world.  Since 2021, it is apparent that there is a disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on members of the Black community. Given the recent increase in attention to the topic of clinical research in the wake of the pandemic, it is important, now more than ever, for people of color to talk to their healthcare providers about the possibility of participating in clinical trials. Why diversity in clinical trials matters Over the years, clinical studies of various disciplines have shown the disturbing trend that women and people of color are not receiving the same level of care and experiencing worse outcomes at higher rates when compared to white males. According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Black Americans are 30 percent more likely to die from heart disease than White people. However, in the area of cardiovascular research, the American Heart Association reports that despite an increasingly diverse U.S. population, clinical trials evaluating new medical and device therapies for cardiovascular disease have historically enrolled a disproportionately low number of women and minorities. Because data from clinical...